Draft attachment for whiffletrees.



PATENTED APR. 16, 1907.

H LAMBERT. DRAFT ATTACHMENT FOR WHIFFLBTREES APPLICATION PILE D APB..17, 1906.

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HARTWELL LAMBERT, or FITZGERALD, GEORGIA.

DRAFT ATTACHMENT FOR WHIFFLETREES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

PatentedApril 16, 1907.

Application filed April 17,1906. Serial No. 312,157.

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, I'IARTWELL. LAMBERT, a citizen of the United States, residing at The object of the invention is to provide a device of this character of simple, strong, durable, and comparatively inexpensive construction which will be well adapted for the purpose intended.

With the above and other objects in view the invention consists of certain novel features of construction, combination, and arrangement of parts, hereinafter described and claimed.

In the accompanying drawings, Figure 1 is a perspectiveview of a portion of a vehicletongue and a whiflletree, showing my improved spring or elastic connection applied to the same. Fig. 2 is a vertical longitudinal sectional view through the same. Fig. 3 is a vertical transverse sectional view taken on the plane indicated by the line 33 in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a perspective view of the pivot-plate, which is securedto the doubletree or whiffletree; and Fig. 5 is a detail view of the slotted plate, which is secured to the tongue or. pole of the vehicle.

Referring to the drawings by numeral, 1 denotes a portion of the draft tongue or pole of a vehicle of any description. 2 denotes a doubletree or whiffletree, and 3 denotes my improved connecting device for mounting the latter upon the former so that it may swing laterally and slide longitudinally against the tension of a spring or cushion, which relieves the shoulders of the draft-ani- -mals from the jerks and knocks they would the drawings.

end, so that when it is desired to swing the whiffletreeto one side of the tongue to facilitate the loading of lumber or the like upon the wagon the bolt may be quickly removed and the casing swung upon the staple. The bolt and staple pass through apertured flanges at the ends. of the casing and also through apertures in a base-plate -5-, which closes the open bottom of the casing.- Formed in the top of this casing adjacent to its center is. a longitudinally-extending slot 6, which receives and guides one end of the cross bar or head 7 of a T-bolt 8, which extends longitudinally through the forward portion 01 the casing 4 and has its screwthreaded end 9 passing through an opening 10, formed in the front end of the casing. Surrounding the bolt 8 between its head 7 and the inner face ofthe front end of the casing is a coiled spring or other cushion 11, the tension of which may be regulated by adjusting a nut 12 upon the outer threaded end 9 of the bolt.

The vertically-disposed cross piece or head 7 of the T-bolt is adapted to serve as a portion of the pivot of the whiffletree 2, and it is seated in a semicircular groove or recess 13, formed in the vertical flange 14 of an anglemetal pivot-plate 15, the bottom flange 16 of which is secured upon the bottom of the whiflietree. The flange or vertical portion 14 is preferably set in the front edge or face of the whiffletree, and the plate is rigidly secured in position by screws or other fastenings passed through apertures 17 in its flanges. The bottom of the vertically-extending groove or recess 13 in the portion 14 of the plate is closed by a forwardly-projecting ear or lug 18, which has formed upon its bottom a pivot-stud or trunnion 19. The latter is arranged concentric with the axis of the semicircular groove 13 and serves as the pivot for the whiffletree. This pivot or trunnion 19 turns in and slides longitudinally in a slot 20, formed in the base-plate or bottom 5 of the casing, secured on the top of the tongue 1, as previously stated. If desired, I may provide upon the upper end of the head 7 of the T-bolt a pointer 23 to coact with a scale 24 along the slot 6 in the casing, so that the driver of the wagon may see the number of pounds the team is pulling.

The operation and advantages of the invention will be'readily seen upon reference to When the parts are in their normal position, .(shown in Figs. 1, 2,) the pivot-stud or trunnion 19 engages the rear end of the slot 20 of the plate 5, the spring holding said parts in such position. WVhen the draft-animals hitched to the whiffletree 2 move forwardly, the whiflietree will slide 1011-, gitudinally upon the tongue against the tension of the spring 11, the pivot 19 sliding in the slot 20 and the bolt-head 7 in the slot 6 in the casing. The arrangement of the pivotstud 19 concentric with the groove or seat 13 for the head 7 of the bolt permits the whiffletree to swing laterally in a horizontal plane, as will be readily understood.

Various changes in the form, proportion, and the minor details of construction may be resorted to without departing from the principle or sacrificing any of the invention as de fined by the appended claims.

Having thus described my invention, What I claim as new, and desire to secure by'Letters Patent, is

1. A device of the character described comprising a casing for attachment to a draft-pole, a plate for attachment to a whiffletree and having a groove or seat and a concentric pivot, a bolt or rod slidable in said casing and having a cross piece or head adapted to engage the seat in said plate, a cushion upon said bolt, and a guide and bearing for said pivot, substantially as described.

2. A device of the character described comprising a casing adapted for attachment to a draftpole and having openings in its sides and forward end and a longitudinal slot in its top, a slotted base-plate for said casing; a pivot-plate for attachment to a whiffletree and having a vertically-disposed groove or seat and a depending pivot arranged concentric with said groove or seat, said pivot being adapted to turn and slide in the slot in said base-plate, a T-bolt having its forward end projecting through the opening in the end of said casing and the cross piece or head upon its rear end seated in the groove or seat in said pivot-plate and sliding in the longitudinal slot in the top of the casing, and a coiled spring surrounding said bolt and confined between its head and the inner face of the front end of said casing, substantially as shown and described.

8. The combination with a draft-tongue and a whiffietree, of a casing upon said tongue having a guide therein, a guide upon said tongue in alinement with the guide in said 7 casing, a. pivot-plate upon said whiffletree having a groove or seat and a pivot-stud arranged concentric therewith and engaged with the guide upon said tongue, a bolt or rod slidable in said casing and having a head seated in said groove or seat and slidable in the guide in said casing, and a cushion in said casing engaged with the head of said rod, substantially as described.

4. The combination with a draft-tongue and a whifiletree, of a casing attached to said tongue and having openings in its sides and front end, and a longitudinal slot in its top, a base-plate secured upon said tongue beneath saidcasing and formed with a longitudinal slot to aline with the slot in the top of the casing, an angle-plate secured upon the front and bottom faces of the whiflietree and formed with a vertically-extending groove or seat, and a concentrically-arranged depending pivot adapted to turn and slide in the slot in said plate, a T-bolt having its threaded end projecting through the opening in the front end of the casing, a nut upon said end, the cross piece or head of said bolt being adapted to engage the seat or groove in said angle-plate and to slide in the slot in the top of the casing, and a coiled spring upon said bolt between its head and the inner face of the front end of the casing, substantially as shown and described.

5. The combination with a draft-tongue and a whiflietree, of a casing upon said tongue having a guide therein, a guide upon said tongue in alinement with the guide in said casing, a pivot-plate upon said whifiletree having a groove or seat and a pivot-stud arranged concentric therewith and engaged with the guide upon said tongue, a bolt or rod slidable in said casing and having a head seated in said groove or seat and slidable in the guide in said casing, a cushion in said casing engaged with the head of said rod, and a pointer carried by said rod to coact with a scale upon said casing, substantially as described.

In testimony whereof I have hereunto set my hand in presence of two subscribing witnesses.

HARTWELL LAMBERT.

l/Vitnesses:

DREW W. PAULK, G. P. MINGLEDORFF. 

